From Our Head of School

As an educator, I remember a quote by John Locke, British philosopher and Oxford scholar (1632-1704), which can be found in his treatise Some Thoughts on Education, (1692). I truly believe it validates our actions in the PVI classroom.

Locke said that children,

"...are travellers newly arrived in a strange country, of which they know nothing; we should therefore make conscience not to mislead them. Children are strangers to all we are acquainted with; and all the things they meet with, are at first unknown to them, as they once were to us.

Great care is to be taken, that they never receive deceitful and eluding answers. They easily perceive when they are slighted or deceived; ...if we play false with them, we not only deceive their expectation, and hinder their knowledge, but corrupt their innocence, and teach them the worst of vices."

As a parent myself, I have a great kinship towards our parents. I have been in the same situation in which they find themselves. All three of my sons, Ryan (’97), Jack (’99) and Dan (’05) spent their high school careers at and graduated from Paul VI Catholic High School. They are very different children--federal agent; film editor, and an aeronautical engineer--but as different as they are, they all found activities and a place at PVI.

Sociologists argue about whether it is DNA or environment that shapes a child, but I truly believe that it is both that factor so much into the success of a child. My husband and I are very proud of the part PVI played in our sons’ lives.

Paul VI Catholic High School is a private college preparatory school for girls and boys in grades 9-12 in Fairfax, Virginia, seeking to help our students Grow in Grace and Wisdom. Our Washington area prep school is part of the Diocese of Arlington and offers rigorous academics, an inclusive community focused on spiritual and leadership formation, and a proud athletic tradition featuring competitive Division I high school athletics in the Washington Catholic Athletic Conference.